SPECULUM VERUM
Is it a red wave? A ripple? Or a trickle? Nobody quite knows. However, what looks certain is that the Republican blow out that many right wing pundits were anticipating has not happened. Crucially, the Democrats have won the crunch Senate race in Pennsylvania. John Fetterman, the man who had a stroke just a few months ago, defeated Mehmet Oz, who the late polls suggested would win.
Elsewhere, it turns out the polls were right — the Senate races are incredibly tight. It looks as if a dramatic late surge for Adam Laxalt in Nevada means the Republicans should squeak another Senate victory for there. So … over to Georgia, again, where it looks as if neither the Republican Herschel Walker nor the Democrat Raphael Warnock will win by 0.5 per cent – so state laws decree another run off must ensure, as it did in 2020.
In the last few weeks, it was widely said that concerns over the state of the economy as well as polls suggesting almost record numbers of Americans felt their country was on the ‘wrong track’ meant that the Republicans would enjoy a big night.
However, it seems that the Democratic strategy — of focusing on abortion rights following the Supreme Court overturning of Roe vs Wade and the ‘threat to democracy’ posed by Donald Trump — did manage to rally young voters and mobilise their base. Democrat pundits are already crowing, but this is still not a victorious night for them. The Republicans are still on course to win the House by a comfortable margin and the Senate remains too close to call.